Something flickered behind Inari’s eyes, and she stopped. Although still angry, she grasped where Moose was coming from, and he wasn’t wrong. She hated it, too. It was easier hating him. Forgiving him meant allowing him back in, and she wasn’t quite sure she could trust that.
Sighing, he stroked his beard and shook his head.
“You can feel however you want to feel, mama. You’re not going. I promise we’ll bring her back to you, but I can’t have you in the mix and be worried about what happens to you too.”
Kong and Mozzi both paused and waited. The brothers were used to Inari popping her neck and going off. If she wasn’t being extra and talking shit, then you should be worried. Whenever Moose was around, it was inevitable, so they were holding their breath. When she took a breather instead and soaked in all their faces, Mozzi’s brows lifted.
“Bruh, check her pulse. Make sure she ain’t stroking out.” He nudged Kong playfully.
“You’re right,” she finally agreed, surprising them all. “Make sure that bitch pays. With her fucking life. She don’t get to walk away from this.”
“I’ll do you one even better,” Mozzi chimed in. “I’m working on accessing all her accounts, in the US and outside the country. Your son is about to be set for life. I’m moving everything into a trust for Dane. Mira gon’ pay ten fucking fold,” he vowed.
“I appreciate y’all coming to tell me.”
Kong and Mozzi led the way off the porch, but Moose lingered a little longer as Inari pulled the screen to her front door open. She carefully canvassed him from head to toe.
“Bring my sister home.”
“I’m fucked up, Nari. A nigga ain’t never claimed to be perfect or none of that. If I ain’t kept my word about nothing else, I promise to bring your sister home to you. Lock up and hold tight.” Moose ambled toward the stairs and trailed his brothers back to Kong’s truck.
Mozzi checked in with Coast and made sure she and Iara stayed put at the house with Audiemar. The three stopped for gas and something to eat before hitting the road to their next destination. Moose had already gotten word to some of their men to load up and bring the artillery with them. Nearly two hours passed with traffic to their destination. Mozzi clicked away on his laptop as night fell around them on the single narrow road.
They passed shipping yards, rock sites, and other large outdoor facilities until they arrived outside Blackwater Logistics. The building took up nearly half a block and was closed off behind an electric fence. Behind it was a view of the river and different ports where the cargo containers could be dropped in. This wasn’t some technical site. This was a front.
“What we looking at?” Kong asked, peering at Mozzi through the rearview mirror.
His focus was on the screen in his lap. His fingers clicked away on the keyboard, and his eyes moved back and forth across the screen as he absorbed the information in front of him. The entire layout of the facility was pulled up, and he could view every entrance and exit. He could override the gate for access, but he wanted a different vantage point for them to enter. The dock air was coated with the smells of dust and salt. Something else lingered, something wrong. The freight terminal was abandoned, or at least it looked that way. Tapping the earpiece against his ear, Mozzi took in the setting from his position.
“The power grid is weird around this muhfucka,” he muttered. “She’s running this shit off a split line. Hidden feeds.”
Kong didn’t respond; he adjusted his earpiece in his ear so his brother could talk to him and got ready to move. Moose checked his weapon before hopping out with him. He’d been a lot quieter and chill. Focused in a way that was new to both him and his brothers. He might have made things even worse coming at Inari the way he did, but there was no way he was letting her walk into this. Approaching the building with his brother, he knew whatever was inside was going to change everything.
“I don’t give a fuck about none of that. We’re going in.”
“Hol’ up. Just… gimme a minute.” Mozzi focused intensely on the screen in front of him.
Vein flexing in his temple with the beginning of perspiration. He enjoyed a challenge just as much as anybody, but tonight wasn’t the night for that. His keystrokes grew aggressive, and finally, a green light flashed over his face. His slanted eyes darted to Kong standing outside his driver’s seat, waiting.
“Make it count. I suggest the side entry. Gives you access to all the lower-level security. I logged the activity history. They rotate every thirty minutes, and three of them take the perimeter while one remains inside.” Bringing his arm up, Mozzi checked the time on his sports watch. “Rotation begins in three minutes. Brim and Prime are on the other side of the building in position.”
“Let’s go,” Kong urged Moose.
Two of Mira’s shooters were taken out before Moose and Kong even made it to the door. Brim and Prime each had their scopes locked in and ready, knocking them down before they even saw the brothers approaching. The double metal doors didn’t hold for Kong. Raising his foot, he kicked them open and marched into the darkness. Lined with metal crates along the concrete pathways, the cold slapped them both in the face. Sudden movement nearby sent both of their automatic weapons shifting in the direction of the shadows of men. Gunfire crackled through the space; sharp and echoing like controlled chaos.There were more men than they anticipated. Kong moved like he’d done a hundred times before. Hugging the wall if needed to avoid being hit and lining up his target through the gun smoke. Moose was faster than usual. Precision with the pull of his trigger. The thermal cameras in Mozzi’s feed detected more movement.
“Left side. Two more coming in. Watch the corner,” he warned.
His brothers took out the two no names with no problems. Frowning at his screen, Mozzi leaned forward. There was a separate space beyond the walls where his brothers stood.
“There’s a sublevel. Push that shelf to the side for access.”
From his position parked in the lot between two large cargo containers, Mozzi observed Kong lower his weapon while Moose covered his back. Once the shelf was pushed aside, a hidden door was revealed. A pad was on the outside, requiring a handprint for access.
“Shit, she got a separate system for this one,” Mozzi mumbled, still clicking away.
Moose glanced at Kong and then looked around. He picked up the closest nigga on the ground and dragged him over. Kong raised his arm and held his hand steady against the scanner. It flickered green.
“We’re in,” Moose announced.
